IAI unveils DIAMOND naval system

Israel Aerospace Industries unveiled DIAMOND on May 20 as a naval warfare concept built around a frigate and a set of smaller companion craft that carry modular weapons and sensors. The Israeli defense company said the system is designed to let navies expand a ship’s offensive and defensive reach without adding another full-size warship. IAI described the smaller craft as remotely operated “wing” ships that work alongside a mothership and stay linked to its combat systems. The company is presenting the concept as part of its naval portfolio at CNE 2026. (iai.co.il) ### How is DIAMOND supposed to work at sea? IAI said DIAMOND spreads weapons and sensors across several smaller vessels operating with a frigate rather than concentrating all capability on one hull. The company said those companion craft are remotely controlled from the mothership “as though they were installed directly on it,” while remaining connected to the frigate’s radar and fire-control systems. The IAI product page says the concept is aimed at distributed maritime operations, with offensive and defensive systems placed on separate craft that can be deployed as needed. (iai.co.il) IAI said that architecture is intended to give a navy more flexibility in how it positions sensors, interceptors and strike systems around a principal combat ship. ### What can the companion vessels carry? IAI and reports citing the launch said the payloads include missiles, loitering munitions and air-defense systems. (iai.co.il) Israel Hayom reported that the modular packages can be replaced within hours, while IAI’s brochure says payloads can be shared across air, ground and naval forces and rapidly deployed on land or mobile platforms. The brochure says DIAMOND also relies on secure communications and an advanced messaging system linking the frigate and companion craft. (iai.co.il) IAI presents that interoperability as part of a broader modular design in which the same payload families can be moved between platforms rather than fixed to a single vessel configuration. ### Why is IAI pitching this around a frigate instead of a new ship? IAI said modern naval forces face evolving missile threats, asymmetrical warfare and pressure to field capabilities with more operational flexibility. (israelhayom.com) The company’s product page says operating large, high-capability vessels with full crews on demand carries logistical and financial burdens, and presents DIAMOND as a way to add capability around an existing frigate core. (iai.co.il) i24NEWS, citing the unveiling, said the concept is meant to expand a frigate’s strike and defense envelope without building new ships. That framing matches IAI’s own description of DIAMOND as a modular architecture for navies seeking more reach from existing fleets. ### What does IAI say navies get from the design? IAI said the concept offers greater firepower, faster response and more operational flexibility by decentralizing functions across multiple vessels. (iai.co.il) Defence Industry Europe and EDR Magazine, both reporting on the launch, said the company is marketing DIAMOND as a hybrid, distributed warfare solution for modern frigates. (i24news.tv) IAI already markets frigate suites, naval combat systems and maritime sensors, and DIAMOND fits into that wider naval catalog. The company’s naval pages describe integrated radars, electro-optics, fire control, command systems and layered defense products for surface fleets, suggesting DIAMOND is being positioned as an extension of those existing offerings rather than a stand-alone ship program. ### Where is IAI showing DIAMOND now? (defence-industry.eu) CNE 2026 is one of the first public venues where IAI is listing the Diamond naval concept among its featured systems. The event page says IAI’s display also includes the BlueWhale autonomous submarine, the Naval LORA missile, loitering munitions, electronic-warfare systems and naval sensors for frigates and other vessels. IAI has published a dedicated product page and brochure for DIAMOND, which outline the concept’s modular payloads, secure communications and distributed architecture. (iai.co.il) Those materials are the company’s main public references for the system as of May 20. (iai.co.il 1) (iai.co.il 2)